


A Perfectly Normal Transaction

by LerxstInSpace



Series: Breaking and Entering [2]
Category: Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: Aerith being Aerith, Flowers, Fluff, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-27
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-18 01:14:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29726073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LerxstInSpace/pseuds/LerxstInSpace
Summary: “What am I going to do with you, Aerith?” Tseng sighs. No, it’s definitely too late for him to try to intimidate her into going home, and of course he’s not going to try and take her in now, not with Reeve sitting right over there watching him talk to her.And she knows it. “You could try... leaving me alone?” All sweetness and light and the worst part is, it’s not even an act. “You’re off work, you’re not going to do anything anyway.”Dammit.
Relationships: Aerith Gainsborough & Tseng, Tseng/Reeve Tuesti
Series: Breaking and Entering [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2160927
Comments: 6
Kudos: 16





	A Perfectly Normal Transaction

“I don’t know... it wasn’t that bad, was it?” 

Reeve is trying his best to sound sincere but Tseng knows that tone too well. Yes. Yes, it was that bad and they both know it. 

“I’m so sorry,” Tseng laughs, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “The first time I take you out to a play and it’s... _that.”_

“The, uh. The costumes were interesting.” But that’s just how Reeve is, isn’t he? Always trying to find something nice to say. “Especially the guy with the... the horse head... thing.”

“Ah. Yes. That was, uh... something. No, but that company usually stays away from the weird experimental stuff. Usually. Apparently not always, lesson learned.” Tseng gives him a squeeze he hopes gets _no, really, you don’t have to be that nice about it_ across. “Next time I promise I’ll pick something a little more mainstre--” 

He cuts off mid-word. Resists the urge to grind his teeth. Silently counts to ten. And watches a certain flower girl who is out way past her curfew ply her trade in front of a cafe on the other side of the square.

Reeve must have noticed something amiss. He doesn’t ask about work but he’s not stupid. He pays attention. And he knows something is up.

“Could you...” Tseng puts a gentle hand on Reeve’s arm, guides him to the fountain in the middle of the square. It’s a comfortable place to sit, and the distance and the sound of rushing water will ensure that he won’t overhear the conversation. “Wait here a moment?”

“Uh... sure?” There’s confusion on his face, but no alarm, and Tseng pats him on the shoulder and, unfortunately, stalks off to work on his own time.

He waits patiently for her to finish up a transaction, then clears his throat. There’s fear in her eyes when she first turns to face him. There always is. But it doesn’t last long. It rarely does. Especially when he’s so clearly off duty.

“What am I going to do with you, Aerith?” Tseng sighs. No, it’s definitely too late for him to try to intimidate her into going home, and of course he’s not going to try and take her in now, not with Reeve sitting right over there watching him talk to her.

And she knows it. “You could try... leaving me alone?” All sweetness and light and the worst part is, it’s not even an act. “You’re off work, you’re not going to do anything anyway.”

Dammit.

“You’re lucky I’m on a date right now.” He tries to smile in a way that looks at least a little menacing. He knows perfectly well how hard it is for him to do “menacing” when he’s out of uniform. And so does she. “Or else I might have to consider taking up a new hobby.”

“Ooh, a date?” The girl seems to physically manifest a little cloud of hearts and sparkles around her. Complete disregard for the effort he's putting into trying to intimidate her at least a little bit. “Where is she?”

_“He,_ actually.”

“Oh! Sorry. Where is he?”

He shouldn’t do this. He really shouldn’t do this. “By the fountain,” Tseng sighs anyway. “Kind of shaggy black hair, beard--”

“In the sweater?”

“That’s the one.”

“He’s _cute.”_ She just _beams_ at him, like she’s sincerely happy for him, and knowing her she probably is. “Is he nice? He looks nice.”

“He is.” Tseng steals a quick look over his shoulder. Reeve doesn’t seem to be too concerned about any of this. From where he’s standing, it probably looks like Tseng is just negotiating with a flower peddler, something someone out on a date might reasonably do. “He’s very nice.” 

Aerith rolls her eyes at him. “See, I don’t get it. You’ve got this nice boyfriend, but you’re so mean to me.”

“When have I _ever_ been mean to you?”

“Right now. And last week. And the week before that. And a couple weeks ago when you said--oh wait, that one was Reno. My bad.”

_“What?_ Was he _actually_ mean to you? That’s--no. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”

“No, just the usual stuff, don’t worry about it. So... let’s make a deal.” Oh, it’s never good when she gets that look on her face. “I’ll go home right now if you buy your boyfriend a flower. How about that?”

She’s got him. Of course he can’t stand over here talking to a flower girl and _not_ bring him something back and she knows it, so he takes out his wallet and prepares to be sucker-punched in it. And to add insult to injury, he happens to catch Reeve’s eye just as he does that. Is he blushing? Hard to tell at night, and at this distance, but... no, he’s blushing, Tseng knows that little bashful grin hidden behind his fist far too well. Dammit. Now he knows he’s getting a flower out of this and he is _loving every second of it_. “He likes blue.”

“I’ve got just the thing.” Aerith sets her basket down, gently rummages through it, and produces a perfect plump hydrangea cluster in the perfect shade of blue. “That’ll be five hundred gil, please!”

“Five hund--are you out of your mind?”

“Hey, if you’re going to make me quit early you’re going to make it worth my while.” Still all genuine sweetness and light. Well, she has a point, he supposes. 

Still... _dammit._

Tseng goes into his wallet and wraps a five hundred gil note in something smaller and less likely to get her mugged on the way home if anyone happens to be watching this transaction (as if he doesn’t know perfectly well that she can handle a garden-variety mugger or three). “This is daylight robbery.”

“Oh, it is _not_ daylight robbery.” She plucks the disguised bill out of his hand and replaces it with the flower. “It’s _nighttime_ robbery! Thanks so much for your business!”

“All right. Your turn.” Tseng resists the urge to clench his fist around the stem and the equally strong urge to ruffle her hair. “Go. _Home.”_

He watches her pack up her basket for the night, sends Reno and Rude a text asking them to keep an eye on her usual way home if they happen to be in the area (again, not that she can’t handle herself but he’d rather she didn’t have to), and when he’s satisfied that she’s on her way, he heads back to collect Reeve.

The worst part of all of this is, the smile on his face when Tseng hands him that flower is worth every gil and she probably knows it.

**Author's Note:**

> Aerith Gainsborough: the living embodiment of Do No Harm But Take No Shit.


End file.
